ARTICLES ABOUT WIDE RECEIVER BY DATE - PAGE 4

I've written there's no Plan B at wide receiver if the Dolphins don't sign either Pittsburgh's Mike Wallace or Green Bay's Greg Jennings in free agency. But let's try to devise one. If the Dolphins can't get a play-making No. 1 wide receiver -- either Wallace or Jennings (or now, maybe Baltimore's Anquan Boldin) - perhaps the best plan is to build a receiving corps that has maybe four guys who each accumulate at least 50 receptions and 600 yards. Yeah, I know, good luck on that.

DAVIE - Dolphins wide receiver Brian Hartline admits he was "kind of curious" about his value as a free agent on the open market. But his curiosity didn't get very far. Hartline bypassed free agency Friday, signing a six-year, $30.7 million contract ($12.5 million guaranteed) to remain with the Dolphins. Hartline said free agency would have been more "lucrative" but he said taking less money is an indication of his excitement about the team's future. "It just shows how much more important it is for me to be in this organization and be in South Florida, and what we're growing, than it is to just chase the top dollar," he said.

Here's something to ponder: what if the Dolphins miss out on both of the top wide receivers in free agency - Pittsburgh's Mike Wallace and Green Bay's Greg Jennings? What's Plan B? Here's my Plan B…revert to Plan A. The Dolphins simply can't miss out on both Wallace and Jennings. They just can't. They have to sign one or the other. Bottom line. There's no one else out there. The rest of the free agent wide receiver class is led by New England's Wes Welker and Julian Edelman, a pair of slot receivers.

Defensive end Cam Wake and defensive tackle Randy Starks represent the absolute best of what the Miami Dolphins have accomplished in free agency under General Manager Jeff Ireland. Both players went from relative unknowns to two-time Pro Bowl selections since signing with the Dolphins. On the other end of the spectrum, Ireland has had free-agent busts such as center Jake Grove, safety Gibril Wilson and wide receiver Ernest Wilford. As it turns out, Miami's up-and-down success with free agency might be normal in the NFL. One former executive said only 50 percent of players who switch teams in free agency are successful.

Dolphins wide receiver Brian Hartline is close to signing a multi-year deal that would pay him around $6 to $6.5 million per season, according to Alex Marvez of FOXSports.com. Such a deal would still leave the Dolphins, who had about $44 million to spend in free agency, enough money to sign a top-tier wide receiver such as Pittsburgh's Mike Wallace or Green Bay's Greg Jennings. Despite the FOXSports.com story, another NFL source said the Hartline deal might not be as imminent as it seems.

- West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith wants to be one of "those guys. " Smith, from Miramar High School, watched rookie quarterbacks Andrew Luck (Indianapolis), Robert Griffin III (Washington) and Russell Wilson (Seattle) step into the NFL and have immediate success. He wants to be like them. And if his showing at the NFL Scouting Combine can be taken seriously, he might be on his way. "They set the bar very high," Smith said of the Luck-Griffin-Wilson rookie trio. "I want to be one of those guys that step in and does the same thing.

INDIANAPOLIS - There's no reason for the Miami Dolphins to emerge from this year's draft without a play-making wide receiver. Because while this class doesn't have the high-profile, superstar game-changers that will go among the first 10 picks, it's full of big, fast guys - Cal's Keenan Allen, Tennessee's Cordarrelle Patterson, Louisiana Tech's Quinton Patton, Baylor's Terrance Williams, for example -- who almost break the mold for the position....

INDIANAPOLIS - The NFL Scouting Combine begins Thursday, and with the Dolphins having five picks in the first three rounds of the draft this year's Combine could lay the foundation for Miami's most lucrative haul in years. The draft gurus say there's quality depth through three rounds at the positions Miami could need help most - wide receiver, cornerback, tight end, and offensive and defensive lines. At this point, on the eve of the Combine, it appears the first round of April's NFL Draft, and the draft's strength, belongs to the big guys.

Five Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders were arrested early Sunday morning after a fight at a Murfreesboro nightclub. The Daily News Journal is reporting that defensive lineman Jerrold Frazier has been kicked off the MTSU team after being charged with assaulting an officer. wide receiver Anthony Amos, cornerback Jared Singletary, receiver Marcus Henry and offensive lineman Adam Stickel all were cited for disorderly conduct. Henry was also charged with resisting arrest.

Dolphins fans might want to begin acquainting themselves with Tennessee wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson. That's who Mel Kiper, Jr., the well-known NFL Draft analyst for ESPN, has the Dolphins selecting at No. 12 in his most recent mock draft. Perhaps the better news for Dolphins fans is Kiper said the draft has good depth at wide receiver through early in the third round. That could allow Miami to address other needs with its first-round pick and still draft a quality wide receiver.